Design and Experimental Validation of a 3-DOF Force Feedback System Featuring Spherical Manipulator and Magnetorheological Actuators

Bao Tri Diep,Thanh T Tran,Quoc Hung Nguyen,Ngoc Diep Nguyen

doi:10.3390/act9010019

Abstract

This research focuses on the development of a new 3-DOF (Degree of Freedom) force feedback system featuring a spherical arm mechanism and three magnetorheological (MR) brakes, namely two rotary MR brakes and one linear MR brake. The first rotary MR brake is integrated in the waist joint to reflect the horizontal tangent force, the other rotary MR brake is integrated in the shoulder joint to reflect the elevation tangent force, while the linear MR brake is integrated in the sliding joint of the arm to reflect the radial force (approach force). The proposed configuration can reflect a desired force to the operator at the end-effectors of the arm independently in 3 DOFs by controlling the current applied to the coils of the MR brakes. After the introduction, the configuration of the proposed force feedback system is presented. Afterward, the design and conducted simulation of the MR brakes for the systems are provided. The prototype of the force feedback system, which was manufactured for the experiment, is then presented as well as some of the obtained experimental results. Finally, the proposed control system is presented and its implementation to provide a desired feedback force to the operator is provided.

Highlights

Much research has focused on the development and application of force feedback techniques with a wide range of applications, including medical and aerospace engineering, military operations, computer games, and virtual reality devices [1,2,3,4]
As the rheological properties can be controlled by an external magnetic field rapidly, reversibly, and continuously, magnetosensitive smart materials have great application potential in construction, automotive industry, artificial intelligence, etc
These research studies showed that magnetorheological fluid (MRF)-based actuators are very potential candidates for haptic applications

Summary

Introduction

Much research has focused on the development and application of force feedback techniques with a wide range of applications, including medical and aerospace engineering, military operations, computer games, and virtual reality devices [1,2,3,4]. Magnetorheological (MR) materials are a class of smart composites prepared by dispersing nanometer- or micrometer-sized ferromagnetic fillers into different carrier matrices. As the rheological properties can be controlled by an external magnetic field rapidly, reversibly, and continuously, magnetosensitive smart materials have great application potential in construction, automotive industry, artificial intelligence, etc. In order to create a better desired feedback force, actuators featuring magnetorheological fluid (MRF) have been recently implemented [28,29,30,31]. These research studies showed that MRF-based actuators are very potential candidates for haptic applications.

Methods

Results

Conclusion